Having been named as Player of the Round for the first round of this year's Lamar Hunt U.S Open Cup (US equivalent of the FA Cup), home-grown star Pat Healey (pictured right) admits it has been nothing short of a dream since joining the club.

"It is great to play where you grew up. Growing up, I watched a lot of professional teams play in the area and to be part of Baltimore professional soccer is great.

"I was very excited to sign with Crystal Palace. I have always wanted to play professional soccer and this made my dream come true."

In fact after being drafted in by the Kansas City Wizards in the fifth round of the drafts, things did not work out for Healey and after deciding to return home to Baltimore to finish his education he found it impossible to turn down Palace's offer.

"It was the perfect fit for me and I couldn't be happier. It is great to be the hometown boy signing with the hometown team."

The signature looks to have definitely worked out for both club and player as Healey's brace over USL Second Division Los Angeles Legends secured the club's progress to the second round of the US Open Cup, but the player refuses to take all the credit.

"We knew it would be difficult going across the country to play the Legends but it was just how the draw worked out.

"The draw is what it is, so we were fine with it. It was difficult to travel 3000 miles during the week when you had two games the previous weekend and a game at home the weekend after the Open Cup game.

"We were very happy to go to L.A. and get a good win against a very good team."

The next round of the US Open Cup will take place tomorrow night against fellow USL-2 opponent Harrisburg and Healey is anticipating a good game.

"Harrisburg are a very good team. We played them on June 8^th and lost 1-0 at home. It was a very hard fought game on a very hot day".

 Despite the defeat, Healey is adamant that the loss allowed him and his teammates to see where they were going wrong.

"We learned a lot about Harrisburg and ourselves after that game. It will be a good match in Harrisburg. I hope we can go on the road and get a win".